*****Official 2024 Royals Season Repository Thread*****

[ChiefsCountry]

Year Two of the Matt Quatraro tenure. Time to take a step up this year. Active in free agency and trades this offseason. A new look pitching rotation and bullpen. Will the young players take the leap up offensively? Bobby Witt extension? New stadium? Will Vinny recover from injury? Salvy taking aim at the Royals record book? Will Cole Ragans turn into the best Royals starting pitcher since Greinke 1.0?

Free Agents/Trades Acquisitions
Seth Lugo, SP
Michael Wacha, SP
Kyle Wright, SP
Hunter Renfroe, OF/DH
Will Smith, RP
Chris Stratton, RP
Nick Anderson, RP
Adam Frazier, 2B
Garrett Hampson, INF/OF
Matt Sauer, RP

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by Ocotillo

MLB Pipeline's final Royals draft predictions. Caglianone gets Matt Olson comps.

https://www.mlb.com/news/final-mlb-m...draft-coverage

6. Royals
Callis: Jac Caglianone, 1B/LHP, Florida (No. 3)
Before this weekend, it didn't appear that Caglianone could get to the Royals. If he doesn't, it's no secret that they love California prep shortstop Bryce Rainer and also would consider Smith.

Mayo: Bryce Rainer, SS, Harvard-Westlake, Studio City, Calif. (No. 10)
This could come down to a choice between Caglianone and Rainer, with Hagen Smith a possibility as well. But Kansas City has always liked Rainer’s left-handed swing.

Yeah, I don't love this scenario for some reason.

There's nothing wrong with Caglianone, but he just doesn't resonate with me. Maybe I'm not giving enough credit to the improvement in his K:BB rate this season.

I prefer Burns if he makes it, and Braden Montgomery.

[Ocotillo]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

Yeah, I don't love this scenario for some reason.

There's nothing wrong with Caglianone, but he just doesn't resonate with me. Maybe I'm not giving enough credit to the improvement in his K:BB rate this season.

I prefer Burns if he makes it, and Braden Montgomery.

Caglianone chases a lot. He does have big time power and he's a freakish athlete to possibly make that approach work. But there's not many MLB hitters that survive with his chase rate. He would be in a small group.

[Fansy the Famous Bard]

Originally Posted by dlphg9

The guy we DFAd for had much less strikeouts, more walks, and a much higher WHIP than the guy we traded for. ERA can be deceiving.

Oh, I'm completely aware. Just thought it was a little bit funny.

[Mizzou_8541]

MLB draft seems like such a crapshoot. Hard to get excited for it like the NFL given how long it usually takes for someone to see MLB. I know there a busts in the NFL draft as well but it seems like the bust:average player ratio is so much higher in MLB.

[poolboy]

Yeah we have been picking so high in the draft for years..its such a crapshoot

[GabyKeepsMeWarm]

Reaaaaaallly hate the lottery in MLB. The MLB draft is indeed a huge crapshoot, but there’s no reason to leave the draft up to chance. MLB isn’t the NBA. It’s just another stupid implementation from that bundle of sticks Manfred to liven things up? Prevent tanking? It’s bullshit.

[SithCeNtZ]

Originally Posted by Mizzou_8541

MLB draft seems like such a crapshoot. Hard to get excited for it like the NFL given how long it usually takes for someone to see MLB. I know there a busts in the NFL draft as well but it seems like the bust:average player ratio is so much higher in MLB.

While I generally agree, I think this year is more interesting with a full year of a new regime. I'm not going to get worked up over any particular pick because of the high attrition rate of even top 5 picks, but I'm very interested in the process that goes into each pick. Are we still drafting defense and speed over everything else? What is our appetite for risk? Are we going to play it safe to try and get someone to the majors quickly or draft a bunch of high schoolers? Whatever we do, I think it sets a tone that future drafts will follow which makes this more interesting than usual.

[Al Bundy]

Originally Posted by GabyKeepsMeWarm

Reaaaaaallly hate the lottery in MLB. The MLB draft is indeed a huge crapshoot, but there’s no reason to leave the draft up to chance. MLB isn’t the NBA. It’s just another stupid implementation from that bundle of sticks Manfred to liven things up? Prevent tanking? It’s bullshit.

You will have a hard time getting me to believe that MLB didn't fix this one in order to let MLB teams tanking won't be tolerated.

[Al Bundy]

By the way I want Konnor Griffin in the draft.

[Ocotillo]

Originally Posted by Mizzou_8541

MLB draft seems like such a crapshoot. Hard to get excited for it like the NFL given how long it usually takes for someone to see MLB. I know there a busts in the NFL draft as well but it seems like the bust:average player ratio is so much higher in MLB.

I like the MLB Draft better because I like the idea of high school seniors mattering to the pros and I like the fact you can go down to Springdale, Arkansas, or Omaha, Nebraska to watch these kids develop.

[Ocotillo]

Originally Posted by Al Bundy

By the way I want Konnor Griffin in the draft.

He is the better athlete and has better all-around tools than Bryce Rainer.

Too bad they can't trade down because I think Theo Gillen might be the best value of the high school prospects because of his hit tool.

[Ocotillo]

Originally Posted by GabyKeepsMeWarm

Reaaaaaallly hate the lottery in MLB. The MLB draft is indeed a huge crapshoot, but there’s no reason to leave the draft up to chance. MLB isn’t the NBA. It’s just another stupid implementation from that bundle of sticks Manfred to liven things up? Prevent tanking? It’s bullshit.

The MLBPA wanted the draft lottery.

Manfred and the MLB owners conceded it to the players to get a CBA done.

[Ocotillo]

The best HS pitching prospect is off the board. He had a big time curveball.

Letting the entire industry scout you all spring and then pulling your name from the draft just two hours before it begins is … a choice, to be kind. https://t.co/byO3htJg2A

— keithlaw (@keithlaw) July 14, 2024

[GabyKeepsMeWarm]

Originally Posted by Al Bundy

You will have a hard time getting me to believe that MLB didn't fix this one in order to let MLB teams tanking won't be tolerated.

But “tanking” in baseball is such a wildly different animal than the NBA or even the NFL. There are very few slam dunk #1 draft picks in baseball. And when there are, they typically don’t play in the majors for at least a year or two, and the MLB game is sooo different than the minors. It’s rare to see rookies make a massive difference. Baseball is slow. It’s a game of chess. You just can’t plug things in the way you can with the NBA or NFL. The lottery is just unnecessary. It’s already a crapshoot enough.

[GabyKeepsMeWarm]

Originally Posted by Ocotillo

The MLBPA wanted the draft lottery.

Manfred and the MLB owners conceded it to the players to get a CBA done.

Not dismissing you, but I’d like some evidence of that. MLBPA is the most powerful union in the world, so they basically get whatever they want, so I could certainly see it happening. It just doesn’t make any sense. How does a lottery benefit the MLBPA?